What the hell Rolf meant when he called Eddy "half-man half-woman Ed boy"?
Uh, I mean...
In addition to frequently making very non-heterosexual gestures such as checking his nails, or even...
And let's not forget his pink and purple room (which reveals his taste in music, fashion and pop culture in general) with a dressing table and his huge closet with women's shoes...
I think it's a little obvious and we all know very well what Rolf meant. At first I overthought about it too, but it's not a sentence with a super deep meaning, Rolf just attested to the obvious and observable fact that Eddy often presents himself as a woman/effeminate.
I think Eddy dresses as a woman even more often than Double D. And it's important to note that almost every moment Double D is dressed as a woman is because Eddy made him do it, while Eddy dresses/acts as a woman spontaneously of his own free will (even though some of the time it's part of his scams, it's a part that didn't need to be added and he adds it just because he wants to, like making Double D be his wife/romantic partner), and yet we insist on saying that Double D is the most effeminate when Eddy's the true and greatest drag queen icon.
While Eddy's masculinity and heterosexuality are visibly forced, pretended and acted, it seems that femininity and womanhood are spontaneous and very comfortable for him. It just comes naturally to him.
I find it funny how Eddy himself sometimes makes fun of Double D because he's effeminate and "into girly stuff" while he doesn't seem to be aware of his own tendency to femininity, and he'd certainly deny the existence of this tendency if someone pointed it out (in "Flea-Bitten Ed", for example, he was very uncomfortable with just Double D calling him nurse, so he doesn't want to be feminine at all, which is expected of this closeted gay kid trying to appear straight and manly at all costs).
In fact, I was a little unsure if I should include him in "Hand Me Down Ed" since he was under the boomerang's effect and his femininity was brought out by it, but the fact that Eddy has this clear "secret" tendency towards femininity makes me believe more on the theory that the boomerang perhaps exposes a repressed side of the characters (to me it makes more sense for the boomerang to make them their opposites, but there's no way to deny that Eddy tends to be feminine without the boomerang. And I know that the effect of the boomerang on Eddy was to make him motherly and not necessarily feminine, but one thing ended up following the other).
I'm currently listening to a youtube video where some guy reviews every episode of EEnE and a few things keep playing on my mind:
This youtuber makes some good points, but overall seems like a jackass (not naming the channel. I don't wanna use my minuscule amount of influence to possibly put some guy on blast for his youtube persona)
There is a serious lack of Ed-based review/commentary content on youtube, and most that I've seen was sadly not so good (hence why I'm still watching this video. I'm starving)
The fandom hates episodes where they think the Eds are undeserving of punishment, but they can't seem to agree on what counts as deserved or undeserved
That last point is what I want to talk about. What constitutes unfair behaviour, and at what point does it "ruin" an episode? I hope this starts a discussion among fans because I want to hear what other people think. This is probably going to be really long and rambly, sorry in advance.
From what I've observed of fan discussions, reviews and aggregated lists, here is a list of some of the most despised episodes (in no particular order):
Smile for the Ed
Sorry, Wrong Ed
Tinker Ed
If It Smells Like an Ed
Cleanliness Is Next to Edness
Your Ed Here
No Speak Da Ed
To Sir with Ed
As mentioned before, these episodes are perceived as dealing unjust punishment to one or all of the Eds. I would argue the entire show is bad things happening to them. Sometimes it is karmic justice getting back at these sneaky little scam artists, but just as often, something bad will happen that wasn't coming to them.
Take "Virt-Ed-Go" for example. In that, the Eds build their own clubhouse and invite other kids to hang out there. Sure, they were a little manipulative towards Jonny in their quest for lumber, but I think we can all agree that it doesn't necessitate comeuppance as harsh as the Kanker sisters taking over the clubhouse and battering the Eds with water balloons. How come an episode like "Homecooked Eds," where Eddy's house is taken over by the Kankers out of nowhere, gets to be a beloved classic?
One of my theories lies in how the episode treats the Eds' discomfort with their situation. Some of the "worst episodes ever" are from seasons 4 and 5, when the series' sense of humour became a bit meaner. "Cleanliness Is Next to Edness," "Sorry, Wrong Ed," "Your Ed Here," and "Smile For the Ed" are stories that roll around in the misery of the characters. I think most people would agree that watching one of our favourite characters get beaten down and slowly becoming more and more desperate isn't that fun, nor is it necessarily good gag fodder.
Part of me loves the idea of the show diving deep into the characters' anxieties. It can be done! "This Won't Hurt an Ed" great for how it humbles a very cocky Kevin while getting the audience to feel for him. Eddy is already not well-liked by his peers, so his character studies are better off not punching down on him too much. "A Pinch to Grow an Ed" has plenty of scenes where everyone except Ed and Edd belittles him (no pun intended) for being short. That episode gives Eddy a few quiet moments and grants him some minor victories, something these others are missing.
Perhaps it's about who is doing the antagonizing. Well-regarded episodes like "Avast Ye Eds" and "Homecooked Eds" can get away with their Ed torture because it's at the hands of the Kankers. Even at their most sympathetic, the Kanker sisters are intimidating to everyone because it's their job to be the villains. They always pose a threat. Therefore, we generally don't get mad when they are the antagonists of the episode.
Compare this to Kevin and Sarah. They're not universally beloved by fans, but the show goes out of its way to let you see where they're coming from. Kevin just wants to protect his pals from Eddy's scams. Of course Sarah would get fed up with her stupid, smelly brother and his obnoxious friends. Let's count Jimmy in with her, too. He's so meek and fragile that he can rarely stand up for himself, meaning he generally has to put up with whatever the Eds do to him. These characters have clear and understandable motives, so when they go after the Eds completely unprompted, it understandably falls flat for some viewers.
You could argue that their actions are never unprovoked due to the Eds having wronged them repeatedly in the past. However, this is an episodic series. With very few exceptions, what happened in one episode has no bearing on any other, therefore the Eds begin each story with a clean slate. This is why it's annoying when Kevin screws up Eddy's school photo in "Smile for the Ed." Looking at the series as a whole, this is one petty act of revenge between two long-standing rivals; on its own, Kevin is being a dick for no reason. It feels like he's messing with Eddy because the plot demands it.
What kills me about this is that the solution to these episodes seems so simple on paper. Just have the Eds do something bad enough to provoke the antagonist character. For instance, "Sorry, Wrong Ed" would be far better if Eddy stole the phone (or maybe Rolf was waiting for a special call, and Eddy answered it instead.) Then, rather than insisting on the scientific plausibility of Eddy's bad luck, Edd could spend the episode making snide remarks about karma.
Unfortunately, once a tv episode is deep into production, it's hard to backtrack and make any huge changes. "Sorry, Wrong Ed" was an infamously difficult show to produce, and I'd imagine a lot of the other episodes on this list were also tough to put together. On top of that, seasons 4 and 5 were plagued by disagreements between old and new staff members. The series was being pulled in two different directions. It's no wonder why most of the episodes that didn't quite come together are from this era.
So there we have it. An episode is unsatisfying when the supporting cast are mean without cause. But what about the episodes where the Eds did screw up, and the audience still feels bitter about them getting punished in the end?
I'm talking about "If It Smells Like an Ed." This is the lowest-rated EEnE episode on IMDb, and regularly appears on lists of the worst episodes of the show. To be honest, I don't understand this episode's bad reputation at all. "If It Smells" is full of memorable moments and jokes, the mystery is fairly compelling, and the outcome seems fair enough in my opinion. The Eds did do something mean and disruptive. I think it makes sense that they would be punished by the end. Not only that, the twist that it was all Jimmy's doing was a clever way to develop his character. His conniving side makes him a way more interesting member of the cast.
My least favourite aspect of this episode would have to be that all of the kids laugh at Jimmy, save for Sarah of course. Naturally, Sarah wouldn't find her best friend's humiliation funny, but why would Nazz laugh? Or Edd, for that matter? I can at least see the narrative reasoning behind Edd laughing. The Eds are treated as a unit, therefore Edd has to do something worthy of punishment, or else he really is being punished for no reason.
That contrivance is rarely brought up in critiques of the episode (that I have seen.) The main sticking point for people is that the Eds don't deserve to be humiliated. Maybe it is a little much for them to be tied to a fence and pelted with fruit, only for the Kankers to drag them away. But that's only one scene! Is it really so despicable that it ruins the episode? In my opinion, no, but I'd love to hear from anyone who disagrees. An episode that is ruined by the final scene for me is "To Sir with Ed." It's an alright episode until Eddy's tub falls through the ceiling. Also, Nazz is a terrible babysitter and comes off kind of stupid in this episode.
That's all I have to say. Just wanted to get all that off my mind. Thanks to anyone who read this foggy-headed rambling. It's been a weird day for me. I felt like I was on another planet most of the time (before you ask, I've been fully sober all day)
Wow, it is has been a while since I posted an update on this blog. I am sorry for inactivity! I have been meeting to write a post but then I get caught up doing something else.
I have been taking a hiatus from analysis. I have been doing well. Aside from the crazy pandemic that is awry right now, I have been busy in my job as freelance writer. It’s so much fun and I love the articles that I write! With that, I spend all day on the computer so at night and on weekends I would like to have a break.
Feel free to send me questions. I would love to do my analysis again, but for now I am just taking a break. I love going back and reading over analysis I have written.
Thank you for your continued support! I hope all of you are staying safe and healthy.
You know....learning that Eddy is 12 and Nazz is 15 makes her near infantile treatment of him in "To Sir With Ed" make so much more sense and makes the episode just a bit more bearable.
@book-o-scams is known for his very well done analyzing between the lines of Ed, Edd n Eddy!
This weekend we are going to do an analysis challenge! I encourage you all to take part. Analyzing can be done in any format, with or without picture, and whatever length.
The episode we will be analyzing is the Cafeteria scene from Smile for the Ed! Starting from the moment Eddy enters the cafeteria, to Ed and Edd impersonating the principal, to Eddy’s triumph over his win.
Looking forward to seeing all the analysis! You have until Sunday evening. Have fun!
I was thinking about "A Fistful of Ed" because I always see people talking about how gay they're being in this scene. I personally never thought much about it because Eddy's using Double D's reputation as a bully to earn respect from the other kids and boss everyone around and that naturally makes him very excited and makes him cling to Double D (more than usual), which in the end doesn't change how gay the scene is because there was no need for him to be so nice to Double D and worry so much about making him comfortable in order to use him (like when he makes Double D his wife/romantic partner in his scams/plans. There's no need for this, it doesn't change anything in the plan, he just adds this part because he wants to). Double D is already his long time friend, he didn't need to act differently in any way to use him to his advantage, he just had to be around him as usual.
And before even thinking about ruling the place, Eddy's first reaction was to be impressed and extremely excited and admired by Double D, finding him very cool, and I'd say he even seems attracted to that side of Double D. With this vision in mind, the way he starts to act towards Double D from then on seems like someone "marking territory", wanting to show that that cool and strong guy already has an owner. Eddy's feeling like the luckiest guy in the world to be close to such a cool guy like him. The scene now has a "Look at my cool boyfriend who's going to kick your ass! You wish you had him, but he's mine!" energy. He also wants to be nice to Double D to please and seduce him.
From this, I conclude that part of his excitement is because he's actually genuinely proud and happy for Double D that he has finally become more confident and learned to be able to defend himself, something we know he really wanted to happen and tried to help Double D with in "Tag Yer Ed" (one of my favorite episodes because it shows how much Eddy cares about Double D, as he spends the entire episode, spontaneously, just dedicating himself to helping Double D be stronger and more confident because he can't stand seeing him being mistreated by others), and besides, I think he might find it hot to see Double D show an aggressive, strong, confident and determined side for a change, and that also makes him admire him more and think he's cool because it reminds him of his brother, the person he admires most in the world.
In fact, I came to this interpretation because I was reflecting more and this scene from "A Fistful of Ed" reminded me of a post someone made about a scene from "Tinker Ed" (a post that Danny Antonucci shared on Facebook by the way!!!) and made me draw a parallel between the two scenes.
The post talks about how Double D's smitten with Eddy in this scene. He doesn't seem like someone who's just happy for his friend, his expressions indicate that he seems to be melting with love for Eddy's unexpected kindness. He's completely touched by just seeing Eddy being kind, as if this were his weakness, something that makes him more attracted to Eddy.
But the impression I have is that Eddy's acting like this on purpose, trying to seduce Double D (maybe not from the beginning, but the moment he realizes that Double D is completely melting in love with him, he immediately takes advantage of the moment) because he was so inexplicably sweet in this scene, he never acts like that, but he knows how much Double D appreciates kindness. There's no heterosexual explanation (so much so that this episode's storyboard was made by Raven Molisee, so it was certainly intentionally gay). It seems to me that he just wanted to share a sweet romantic moment with Double D and wanted to melt his heart by showing him how kind he can be sometimes. Like, Double D says he's very proud of Eddy in the most passionate tone of voice possible, and Eddy immediately reacts by reciprocating and wrapping him in his arm, and the detail of his hand on Double D's waist always gets me. And Eddy even keeps showing off to Double D, bragging about his kindness, saying he's "all heart". And on top of that, Eddy saying "Right, Ed?", asking him to confirm what he's saying, why does he suddenly involve Ed in the situation? It seems a lot like that kind of situation where a guy asks his friend to help him win over his crush by confirming the things he tells his crush with the intention of seducing him. Like, why is he trying so hard to convince Double D that he's a sweetheart? I don't know any other way to interpret this other than him blatantly flirting with Double D. They exchange lots of touches and looks and end the scene walking away hugging each other exactly like a couple, and they do it so naturally.
Anyway, the parallel I wanted to draw when comparing both scenes was that in both they surprise each other with unexpected behaviors that please them. Eddy was attracted to Double D's supposed aggressiveness and determination, and Double D was attracted to Eddy's supposed kindness and sweetness. They're also both proud of each other in both scenes.
